


A Different Kind of Goddess

by listenerrayne



Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-18
Updated: 2014-09-03
Packaged: 2018-02-13 15:22:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2155509
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/listenerrayne/pseuds/listenerrayne
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mindah is the Dragonborn, and one of the most famous people in Tamriel. She thought she had seen it all, but one day, when a "storm" came, two Asgardian gods fall from the sky. Turns out, all three of them need to find the same person, and they can only accomplish their goal if they work together. This will work, right?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Mindah strode down the steps of Lakeview Manor.  
“Listener!” A shrill voice pierced the air, coming from the red-haired Imperial dressed as a jester that sat at the dining room table. Rayya, Mindah’s Redguard housecarl, shot a suspicious look at the man, but didn’t move from making dinner.  
“My Thane, is grilled chicken okay for dinner?” she asked.  
“That’s fine with me,” Mindah said as she grabbed her dragonbone dagger from a nearby weapon rack, “I’m going to go feed Shadowmere and see if any of the crops need harvesting.”  
“Be careful, my Thane. Are you sure you don’t want me to accompany you?”  
“C’mon, Rayya, I’ll just be right outside. I’ll be fine.”  
“If you insist.” Rayya went back to her cooking.  
Mindah turned to the Imperial man, still sitting at the table, “Keep your blade sheathed, Cicero.”  
“What makes the Listener think Cicero won’t? He wouldn’t murder the Housecarl without reason, and Cicero knows she wouldn’t do anything to give him one!”  
“Yes, I know.” Mindah smirked at her friend’s words and turned to exit.  
Once outside, Mindah glanced up at the sky, as she always did. The clouds were thick, and lightning flashed within them. How did it get so stormy all of the sudden? She thought. “You don’t think . . .?”  
Almost everyone had heard of the Bifrost. Of Thor, and Asgard. Mindah hadn’t seen it personally, but some of Tamriel’s elders say that when one of the Gods of Asgard wanted to travel to another realm, they would use the Bifrost. Many mistook it as a storm if they weren’t close enough. The elders tell the tales of the Allfather, King Odin, and how he brought peace to the Nine Realms.  
When Mindah first heard of Asgard and their Gods, her interest was immediately drawn to it. She scoured the libraries of Tamriel searching for information. She now knew all about Asgard, and the Gods there. The Allfather, Odin, was the most famous. Thor was the god of thunder. His brother, Loki, was the god of mischief and lies. Some say that Loki once came to Nirn and gathered an army, and tried to enslave another realm, but Thor, along with the heroes of that realm, defeated him.  
Mindah longed to see the Bifrost, and Asgard. But why would Asgardians come to Nirn now? They were with peace with the other realms.  
A fireball pulled Mindah from her thoughts. She looked up to see two men wearing strange robes and masks running toward her, hands glowing with spells. She ran forward and swung her fist at one, hitting him right in the face.  
Shadowmere appeared out of nowhere and began kicking the other man with his hooves. Mindah thrusted her dagger forward into her opponent’s chest. He screamed in agony and fired a shock spell at her. She dodged most of it, but her arm got hit. Energy surged through her, making her fall to the ground. Right when she thought she was a goner, the man standing over her fell, and Shadowmere crushed his skull with one stomp.  
Mindah stood and put a hand on Shadowmere’s head.  
“Thanks for helping me,” she said to the black horse. Shadowmere gave a snort in response.  
But who would want to kill Mindah? She was the legendary Dragonborn. Dovahkiin. The Harbinger of the Companions. The Guildmaster of the Thieves Guild. Hell, even the Listener for the infamous Dark Brotherhood. No one had ever dared to cross her. Most feared her. She could kill by just uttering a single word.  
Then, she found a note in one of the assassin’s pockets that explained some.  
Board the vessel Northern Maiden docked at Raven Rock. Take it to Windhelm, then begin your search. Kill the false Dragonborn known as Mindah before she reaches Solstheim.  
Return with word of your success, and Miraak shall be most pleased.  
Who was Miraak? Why was he such an idiot? Mindah would have to go to Solstheim and figure this out . . .  
A loud clap of thunder rang out. The sky was now filled with clouds and lightning.  
“Something’s not right . . .” Mindah sheathed her dagger and walked toward the stables. Shadowmere seemed to think something was wrong as well; he seemed . . . fidgety.  
“I’m glad you really don’t need to eat. I don’t like that I have to pretend that you’re a normal horse though. . .” Mindah told the dark horse. A roar of thunder sounded around them, so deafening that I actually made Mindah’s ears ring. She looked up to see that the clouds were now swirling and were forming a funnel shape in the distance, but it was different. Tornadoes didn’t happen in Skyrim.  
“C’mon. I’m checking this out.” Mindah climbed atop Shadowmere and grabbed the reins. They bolted off into the night, toward the funnel.  
Because of Shadowmere’s unnatural speed, they arrived in minutes. The funnel was right in front of them, in the middle of a field. Blue lightning struck the ground around the funnel. The wind was howling. The funnel was touching the ground now, and it was putting off a strange blue glow. Suddenly, lightning filled the air and made a blinding light. Mindah turned away and covered her eyes, but the light was still blinding.  
The light faded. The wind stopped. There was only silence. Until. . .  
“Brother!” A powerful voice rang out through the silence. “Do you remember where Heimdall said our opponent was?”  
Another voice spoke. It sounded irritated. “An island called Solstheim.”  
No.  
It couldn’t be.  
Once the dust around her faded, Mindah could make out two figures, both men, standing where the funnel had been. They were both wearing a strange type of armor, and even stranger helmets. Both were big guys. They both would tower over Mindah.  
One was wearing some silver-looking armor, with a red cape. He had blonde hair that hung to his shoulders. He was wearing a silver-colored helmet with feathers on it. Not real ones, but the helmet was made to look like it had feathers. In his right hand was a hammer. A big hammer. He was slightly taller than the other man, and much more muscular. He was also quite handsome.  
The other was wearing emerald green armor with bits of gold and black in it, along with a gold helmet with horns sticking out of the forehead. At first, Mindah thought it looked ridiculous, but then she decided it seemed to suit the man. He was leaner compared to the other man that was apparently his brother. His brother was handsome, but in Mindah’s opinion, the one wearing green was better-looking than the other man. High cheekbones, bits of raven black hair sticking out from under his helmet. . . She decided she wanted that. . .  
He held no weapon that Mindah could see. Perhaps he was a mage.  
Maybe he was Loki.  
Maybe the other man was Thor.  
Maybe that was the Bifrost.  
No.  
It couldn’t be.  
“Who are you?” she called out, stepping out from the shadows she was hiding in.  
“I would ask the same of you,” the man in green said.  
“The name’s Mindah.” She thought for a moment. “Are you who I think you are?”  
“That would depend on who you think we are,” the blonde man said.  
“Asgardians. Thor and Loki. That . . . funnel thing was the Bifrost,” Mindah said.  
“Absolutely correct.” The man in green gave her a wide grin.  
Yep. I want that. I’m going to get that.  
“Let me guess, you’re Loki?” Mindah gestured to the man in green, then turned to the blonde man, “And you’re Thor?”  
“Correct again,” Loki said, the grin still on his face.  
“She seems smart,” Thor commented.  
“Knowledge is my name,” Mindah said with a smile.  
“Really?” Thor seemed interested.  
“Mindah means knowledge in Dovahzul. That’s the language of the dragons,” Mindah explained.  
“Dragons? There are dragons in this realm?” Thor asked.  
“Yeah. I wouldn’t recommend seeking one out and trying to slay it. I know you’re a . . . God and all but they’re still hard to fight.”  
“You have fought a dragon?” Loki asked.  
“Many, in fact. . . It’s kind of my job.”  
“Why?” Thor asked.  
“It’s a long story.” Mindah glanced up at the now clear sky and frowned. “I assume you don’t have a place to stay tonight?”  
“I assume you know where we can stay?” Loki raised an eyebrow.  
“I have a pretty big place not far from here. I have a couple extra beds you can use. I’ll tell you about myself on the way.” Mindah turned to walk toward Shadowmere.  
“You do not have to go to such trouble for us,” Thor insisted from behind.  
“The closest town is miles from here. The inn there isn’t the nicest, and I’m sure you’re used to some royal treatment. Most treat me like royalty here even though I’m not, so my house is better than an inn. You coming or not?”  
“Your kindness will be most appreciated,” Thor said with a smile.  
“Follow me, then,” Mindah grabbed Shadowmere’s reins and began to walk back toward Lakeview. She glanced behind her to see Loki and Thor following her. “Ever heard of the Dragonborn?”  
Silence.  
“No? Well, I’m the Dragonborn. It’s a person with the body of a mortal and the soul of a dragon. They don’t come around much, and when they do, it’s usually to do something big, like found an empire or save the world. The Dragonborn has the ability to Shout as the dragons do, to say words in the dragon language and project their energy into a Thu’um. There are many different Shouts, like fire breath and frost breath and one that can make me run really fast. The Dragonborn is also the ultimate dragonslayer. Some even say that Dragonborns are made by Akatosh himself. Wait, you might not know who he is—“  
“Of course we know who Akatosh is. That’s your version of the Allfather,” Loki stated, rolling his eyes.  
“Really? The books I read didn’t say that. Anyway, I’m basically pretty powerful myself. I can’t command thunder and lightning like you can,” Mindah glanced at Thor. All she caught was the beginning of a smile before she turned around again, “But I do have a Shout that will make a storm come and lightning will strike all my enemies down.”  
“When I came here, to Skyrim, I was headed for the College of Winterhold because of their vast library. Well, I messed up. Some Imperial soldiers mistook me for a Stormcloak rebel, even though I’m a Breton, and arrested me. They took me, along with some other prisoners, to a town called Helgen. I was bound for the chopping block, and pretty much thought that it was the end for me, but this huge dragon comes out of nowhere and just starts burning everything down! It was a massacre! But that dragon, that almost killed the whole town, saved my life.” Mindah glanced back at Thor and Loki. Both were watching her intently. Mindah assumed they both decided to be quiet throughout this, so she continued.  
“Turns out, that dragon was Alduin, and it was my destiny to defeat him, although I didn’t know it at the time. I got caught up in this dragon business and discovered that I was Dragonborn. At first, I thought it was nonsense. The Nords of this land thought differently. Of course, they were raised on the tales of the Dragonborn. I wasn’t. I went through some deep shit fulfilling my destiny! I hope the world is thankful. I had to go through countless tombs and travel what seems like halfway across Tamriel trying to get everything done, but I finally ended up in Sovngarde, where Nords go in their afterlife. Alduin was there eating all the souls of the dead. I, along with some ancient heroes, defeated him. Thus, making me famous. I couldn’t, and still can’t, take two steps without someone going ‘Oh Dragonborn, thank you for saving us!’ or ‘Oh Dragonborn, will you demonstrate your Thu’um?’” Mindah made sure to add emphasis on the last parts, earning a chuckle from the god of thunder.  
“I mean, I liked the attention at first, but now it’s just annoying! Aside from being this hero, I did some other things after I defeated Alduin. I became the leader of a well-respected band of warriors, the Companions, and studied at that College of Winterhold for a time.”  
“So you came here seeking knowledge and ended up saving the world?” Thor asked.  
“Right.”  
“But studying at the College and becoming the leader of the Companions was not all you did after defeating Alduin,” Loki stated.  
“Right again. I became Thane of many holds and most of the Jarls gave me nice houses for half-price because of my help to them. Seems ridiculous to me, like they’re trying to get on my good side. I don’t blame them, though. If I felt like it, I could just Shout them to pieces.”  
“And you did some other . . . darker things, too,” Loki continued. Mindah could almost hear the evil grin in his voice.  
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Mindah insisted.  
“You are a horrid liar.”  
“Don’t remind me. Anyway, we’re here now.”  
Mindah lead Shadowmere to the stables and rubbed his neck affectionately. She turned to see Thor and Loki staring up at her house.  
She believed it was quite impressive. It was almost like a palace compared to where most in Skyrim lived. Her manor had an entry way, the walls lined with various weapons and trophies she had found in her adventures. The main hall had a huge dining room table, just in case she ever wanted to hold some sort of get-together at the spur of the moment. To the left of the main hall was a tower, made for enchanting. The top of the tower was filled with soul gems and unenchanted daggers, rings, and other trinkets she could experiment on. Now, Mindah would say she was adept in her enchanting, having enchanted all her weapons and armor herself and training with the mages in Winterhold.  
To the right of the main hall was an armory. The walls were lined with mannequins, display cases, and weapon racks. She had all kinds of armor, from the heavy and bulky Blades armor to the light mage robes of the College of Winterhold. The same went for weapons. Even though she preferred her bow and sword over all, she had the Ebony Blade of Mephala to the small razor of Mehrunes Dagon on display, although only a select few actually knew where she got those items. . . Mindah was the most proud of her armory than to anything else in the house.  
Directly in the back of the house was another tower, but this time, it was for the alchemist. The bottom of the tower was lined with bookshelves, stuffed with books and notes that she had found and collected over the years. She had even more stowed away in different locations as well. The top of the tower had an alchemy lab, shelves, and chests that were filled with potions and alchemy ingredients.  
"Like it?" Mindah asked, "I built it almost entirely by myself."  
"You built this?" Thor sounded astonished, "It is most impressive!"  
"Thanks. Come on. I can't wait to see the look on Rayya's face when she sees this!"  
Mindah led the two Asgardians into the manor. She imagined that they were scanning the weapons and other items that lined the shelves of her entry way as they walked. Once she stepped into the main hall, she was met with two totally different expressions: one of shock, and one of interest mixed with amusement.  
"Listener," Cicero began with an interested tone, "What kind of crops do you have? Cicero is sure that the Un-Child will be most interested in those alchemy ingredients!"  
"Dammit, I forgot to harvest my crops!" Mindah exclaimed.  
"My Thane, you didn't tell me you were having guests," Rayya said from her spot at the fireplace.  
"I would have, but I wasn't exactly planning for these guests."  
"Who are they?" Cicero asked.  
"Believe it or not, we have the god of thunder and the god of mischief right here in our house." Mindah replied nonchalantly.  
"Ohhh! Mischief?" Cicero exclaimed.  
"You mean from Asgard?" Rayya almost dropped her ladle.  
"Aye. I saw the Bifrost with my own eyes. Oh and would you mind sleeping in the extra bed in the cellar? It'll just be for a couple of days."  
"Not at all, my Thane! Just let me finish dinner and I will ready the guest beds."  
"Cicero," Mindah turned to the jester, who was excitedly bouncing in his seat, "You don't mind sleeping in the same room as me? Like brother and sister?"  
"Not at all! We are brother and sister, after all!"  
"Good." Mindah turned around to face Loki and Thor. Loki had a neutral expression, with just a twinge of interest, on his face, while Thor had an all-out expression of wonder etched onto his face.  
"You two will get the two guest beds. I'll get Rayya to use the good blankets. You're okay with chicken, right?"  
"Chicken is fine!" Thor said.  
"So, two Asgardian gods fall from the sky and you are only fazed for just a moment, and now you are treating us as normal guests?" Loki inquired.  
"Well, yeah. If I was an Asgardian god, I wouldn't want a big fuss made over me when I probably got plenty of attention back on Asgard. Don't you just want to be treated normally for once?" Mindah answered.  
"I have never truly known what 'normal' is like. I have been Asgardian royalty all my life. Then I was treated as a criminal. Neither of those are 'normal'."  
"Then I'll show you what normal is like. Or I'll show you the best I can." Mindah turned to Thor, who was examining an alchemy lab that sat in a corner, "Just take a seat anywhere you'd like. I'll get more chairs if I have to."  
"What is this?" Thor gestured to the alchemy lab.  
"An alchemy lab. You mix ingredients and make potions and poisons. I'll show you how if you want me to."  
"What kind of potions can you make?"  
"Lots. There are some that can heal you, give you more stamina, some can make you better at casting certain spells. There's almost no limit to what you can do if you experiment enough. I take it that you'd like me to demonstrate?"  
"Go ahead," Thor backed away from the table.  
“You just take some ingredients that have the same effect,” Mindah explained and pulled some blue mountain flowers, blisterwort, and some wheat stalks out of a pouch and began to grind them up, “And mash them up together, and once you have this paste, you add some water.” Mindah poured some hot water into the bowl and mixed it up. “And now you have a healing potion. Here, take it.”  
Mindah turned to see Thor behind her, Loki peering over his shoulder.  
“What exactly can I use it for?” Thor asked.  
“Drink it, and it’ll heal almost anything. If I made it more potent it could heal broken bones, but now it’ll just heal minor cuts and bruises,” Mindah explained.  
“Impressive,” Loki remarked.  
“I know, right? Anyway, when you came down from the Bifrost, you said you had to kill someone on Solstheim. Who is it?” Mindah asked.  
“Someone called Miraak. The gatekeeper to the Bifrost, Heimdall, saw him and knew he was planning something bad. We’re here to stop him.” Thor explained.  
“Miraak? He tried to have me killed!” Mindah exclaimed.  
“Why?” Loki asked.  
“I don’t know. Some cultists attacked me right before you got here. One of them had a note saying that if they killed me, Miraak would be most pleased. You think I have something to do with whatever he’s planning?”  
“Possibly,” Loki stated.  
“Well, since you don’t know much about this realm, and we both have good reason to find this ‘Miraak’, you think we could work together to try to find him?”  
“That is fine with me. What about you, brother?” Thor said and turned to Loki.  
Loki seemed to stare into the depths of Mindah’s mind for a moment.  
Well, he might can read minds . . . That scares me.  
“She has no bad intentions, and yes, I can read minds. You are right to be scared,” Loki said with a smirk.  
“All right then . . . We leave tomorrow?” Mindah asked.  
“Deal,” Thor said with a smile.


	2. Chapter 2

"Cicero, have you seen my other boot? I swear I just had it!" Mindah asked her red-headed companion.

She was wearing her Dragonscale armor that was now missing its left boot and sitting on the foot of her bed. Cicero was leaning against the wall across from her, having just put on his hat.

"Cicero has not seen the Listener's boot recently. Maybe she left it in the cellar when she was working on her armor yesterday," Cicero suggested.

"Maybe." Mindah stood and ran her fingers through her shoulder-length, dark-blonde hair. With her helmet under her arm, she walked down the steps to the dining room.

Rayya stood at the cooking pot, making breakfast, while Thor and Loki sat at the table.

"Sleep well?" Mindah asked them as she approached.

"Your beds were quite comfortable," Thor remarked.

"Where is your other boot?" Loki asked.

"I think it's in the cellar. Will you check, Cicero?" Mindah answered.

"Cicero doesn't mind at all! Maybe he can find some nasty skeevers down there and stab them!" Cicero exclaimed before scampering to the back of the house.

"Sounds lovely," Mindah muttered while she sat her helmet down on the table.

"Is your armor made of . . . scales?" Thor asked.

"Yep. Dragon scales, to be exact. I made it all myself." Mindah loved when people asked that. It made her feel so proud of all the hours spent with Eorlund at the Skyforge creating it.

"And you said that your weapons are made from dragon bones?" Thor inquired once more.

"Right again."

"Do you smear the blood of your foes on your face after you kill them?" Loki asked.

"I've done it before. It's oddly satisfying. And if you're asking that because my weapons and armor are made from slain dragons' corpses, it's not all for show. These scales are harder than Skyforge steel and my weapons can cut through bone like its butter." Mindah took a seat just as Cicero scampered back into the room, boot in hand.

"Listener did leave her boot in the cellar, right by the forge! But there weren't any skeevers for Cicero to stab!" he exclaimed.

"Just go outside and see if there's a mage at that weird altar thing by the lake and stab him. I'm sure he won't mind," Mindah said as she slipped her boot onto her foot.

"Yes, Listener!" Cicero exited the room with a laugh.

"And you are sure that he is suitable to come with us to Solstheim?" Loki asked, looking at the spot where Cicero stood.

"Of course. He might be insane, but he's also my best friend. We've done everything together. He's coming. Even if I told him to stay, he'd follow us. I don't think we have a choice," Mindah said with a smile.

Mindah was the Listener for the Dark Brotherhood. Cicero was the Keeper. The Keeper and the Listener had the two roles closest to the Night Mother, and it was the Keeper's job to protect the Listener and Night Mother. It made sense for Mindah and Cicero to be friends. Cicero was supposed to look out for Mindah. But that was only part of the reason of why he was coming.

Although Mindah wasn't exactly proud of it, she and Cicero weren't exactly "friends". But they weren't "more than friends". They were more like "friends with benefits". She couldn't tell you how it happened, but suddenly, she and Cicero came to each other with all their . . . urges. At first, it was weird and unusual. Now, it was a common thing for them. For Mindah, it was worse than a skooma addiction, and she hated herself for being involved with Cicero in such a manner. All that kept her going when she thought of her situation was the thought, "Well, at least I'm fuck-buddies with my best friend and not some tavern wench."

It could be worse. She could actually be addicted to skooma instead of her insane, jester friend.

"My Thane, would you like a sweetroll of a honey nut treat with your breakfast?" Rayya asked.

"Sweetroll. I don't feel like chewing the nuts," Mindah answered.

Both Loki and Thor gave her a questioning look.

"What? It's not my fault that I have a sweet-tooth! Besides, if I don't get something sweet in the morning, I get cranky. You don't want to handle a cranky me. It's awful," Mindah exclaimed.

"You certainly do not care what people think of you," Loki stated.

"At first I did, but then I realized that I shouldn't care what people think. I mean, they're just people. And besides, if they don't like how I am, they're too scared of me to tell me or make some kind of remark. They're right to. I'd probably start screaming at them if they said something bad about me. It's not pretty when I scream at people, considering that when I raise my voice, things go flying across the room . . ." Mindah rambled.

"Listener!" Cicero's voice rang through the house. He came bouncing into the room, holding a bag, "There was a mage down at the evil altar! Cicero chased him down and stabbed stabbed stabbed until he was silent! And Cicero took his things, too!" Cicero sat a pouch on the table, "Gold! And jewels! And a book!"

"You can have the gold, and the jewels if you want, but the book is mine." Mindah snatched the book from the pouch and flipped through the pages. It was a book on Illusion magic.

"Of course, Listener! But Cicero wanted the mischievous god to have this!" Cicero took an emerald from the pouch and sat it down in front of Loki, who had a bewildered expression on his face.

"Well, say thank you, brother!" Thor said between laughs.

"Thank you . . ." Loki said slowly, reaching out and taking the jewel as he did.

"It reminded Cicero of you, it did! Because you wear green, and so does the emerald!" Cicero exclaimed, "And the thunder god gets the ruby, because it matches his cape!" Cicero handed a blood-red ruby to Thor, who smirked and took it.

"You have my thanks. Did you not notice that it matches your motley?"

"Cicero did, but he already has many rubies! Just like how the Listener collects books and skooma!"

"You're not supposed to talk about that!" Mindah exclaimed, shooting out of her seat.

"My Thane!" Rayya shouted from the other side of the room.

"What? I don't drink it, I just have a big stash of it so I can bribe people with it!"

"My Thane!" Rayya repeated.

"Don't judge me!" Mindah shouted. The ground shook.

"Listener, you made the ground shake," Cicero stated.

"Yeah, I know . . . I'll calm down now . . ."

"I think this is going to be a fun trip," Thor remarked.

"It's certainly going to be interesting, that's for sure," Mindah said as she opened her book.

~~~

"Do you have horses?" Mindah asked the two Asgardians.

"We brought them, yes," Loki answered.

"Well, where are they?"

"On their way."

Just then, two horses, tall and lean, trotted into view.

"Did that 'Heimdall' send them here?" Mindah asked.

"You learn quickly," Loki commented.

"I like learning. That's why I call myself Mindah."

"Why do you not go by your birthname?" Thor asked.

"I don't like my birthname."

"What is it?"

"Maybe I'll tell you one day, but not now." Mindah climbed atop Shadowmere, "C'mon. Let's hope we don't run into any trouble."

"You lead, we'll follow," Thor said. Mindah saw Loki open his mouth, most likely to object, but he quickly closed it. Maybe he realized that he actually needs to follow me, Mindah thought.

"Cicero? Where'd you go?" Mindah shouted, glancing around from her spot on Shadowmere's back.

"Cicero was getting extra carrots for the trip!" Cicero exclaimed as he ran into view, bag in hand.

"Well, tie it on." Mindah put her helmet on.

After Cicero had the bag tied on, he hopped onto Shadowmere's back as well.

"And we're off."

~~~ 

"A city?" Thor asked when Whiterun came into view. They stopped their horses.

"Yeah, Whiterun. We should stop for dinner there," Mindah said, "I'm sure Lydia and the Companions would love if I visited." I wonder what they'll think about my new friends, she thought, Should I tell them that they're Asgardian gods?

"You think I should tell them that you're gods?" Mindah asked.

"I think the helmets will be a giveaway," Thor stated.

"I should just tell them." Mindah nudged Shadowmere's sides with her feet, urging him to trot forward.

"Just so you know, I have a very high status here. I'm Thane, and everyone respects me, so passing through should be easy," Mindah explained as they neared the city.

"What exactly is a Thane?" Thor asked.

"An honorary title, mostly," Mindah slid off Shadowmere's back in front of the stables, "I was given the title here because I helped the jarl with the dragon threat. I killed my first dragon right over there," Mindah pointed toward the western watchtower, "I nearly died. Spent almost a week in the Temple of Kynareth. I still have a nasty scar right above my hip." Mindah pointed to her left hip.

They reached the gates. The guards posted there eyed them.

"Welcome back, Dragonborn," one of them said.

"Good to be back," Mindah muttered while the gates opened for them.

Whiterun looked the just the same as it always did, although, to its citizens, the four people entering were anything but ordinary. Adrianne stopped her hammering and stared as they walked by. Mindah looked over at the woman, smiled, and waved nonchalantly. She was sure the jarl would hear of this and summon her any minute.

Mindah pulled a key from her pocket and unlocked the door to Breezehome. Once the door was open, Mindah was face-to-face with Lydia, who stood with a sword in her hand. When she saw Mindah, she quickly sheathed it.

"Forgive me, my Thane! I thought you . . . were a . . . thief . . ." Lydia said, eagerly at first, but slowing as her gaze drifted from Mindah to the two men standing behind her, "Who . . .?"

"Ever heard of Thor and Loki?" Mindah asked, "That's them."

"From Asgard?" Lydia stood back to let the four walk into the house.

"Yep. Make us some dinner?"

"Of course, my Thane." Lydia looked like she was still trying to process what just happened as she walked to the cooking pot and began to make something.

"You wanna stay here while I go visit the Companions or do you want to come?" Mindah asked the three men standing behind her.

"Cicero wants to come!" Cicero exclaimed.

"I would like to meet the best warriors of this land . . ." Thor said.

"I'll come," Loki said.

"Well then, follow me!" Mindah turned and exited.

The sky was now a rosy pink. It would be dark soon.

The noise from Jorrvaskr could be heard from the marketplace. Steel hitting steel rang out from the training yard in the back. The mead hall was one of the few places that felt like home to Mindah. It was the first home she had in Skyrim, and the others that lived there were pretty much her family.

Mindah reached the doors and pushed them open.

"I'm back!" she exclaimed when she entered.

"Mindah!" Farkas exclaimed.

"Who're your friends?" Vilkas asked.

"That's half of the reason why I'm here. Now, listen to my story. . ." Mindah started.

~~~

"So now you really have a wide variety of friends!" Ria exclaimed.

"And I thought that being one of Jarl Elisif's best friends was extraordinary . . ." Mindah said.

"You know anything about this 'Solstheim', Vilkas?" Aela asked Vilkas.

He was silent for a moment.

"It's an island off the coast of Windhelm, part of Morrowind. It was originally part of Skyrim. In the sixteenth year of the fourth era, the High King gave it to Morrowind to serve as a refuge for the Dunmer after the Red Mountain erupted—" he started.

"I know that, but the people that live there? Anything unusual about them? And Miraak, what about him?" Mindah said.

"Hm, I haven't heard that name before, but I feel like I have. As for the people of Solstheim, the Dunmer there are normal as far as I know. There is mainly two settlements: Raven Rock, and the Skaal Village. Raven Rock is where everything is, mainly. It used to have a big ebony mine, but they don't use it anymore for some reason. The Skaal are Nords. Many think that they have some kind of secret, so you might want to talk to them. Then there's Tel Mythrin. I've only heard of it once, but it's where a master Telvanni wizard lives. He might know something."

"Sounds like this place is just shrouded with mystery, then," Mindah said and turned to Thor and Loki, "We've got a lot to figure out."

"Definitely . . ." Loki said.

"I think we should stop by the College and see if Urag has a book on any of this . . ." Mindah murmured, half to herself, "I'm sure he'd know something . . ."

"When do we leave?" Thor asked.

"Tomorrow morning, of course," Mindah turned to the rest of the Companions, "I'm going to get Lydia to stay here so one of them can have her bed at my house."

"Your housecarl? I bet she'll be sleeping in Farkas's room," Athis said.

"What?"

"Farkas and Lydia have this thing going on," Ria said.

"When did that happen?" Mindah exclaimed. All right, I'm interested.

"It's been going on for a couple months now," Njada said.

"Really? She's got a beast on her hands . . ." Mindah snickered.

"All right, I liked that one!" Aela exclaimed with a laugh of her own.

"Do you have any words on this?" Vilkas asked Farkas.

"No," Farkas said and stood to walk away.

"We drove him away . . ." Mindah said in mock sadness.

"Blame it on Torvar!" Njada said, smiling for once.

"What'd I do?" Torvar slurred.

"You drank all our mead," Vilkas snapped.

"Well, that's what it's there for, right?"

"All right, we have to go back now if we want to be up by dawn. I'll stop by tomorrow morning. I'll tell Lydia not to get into too much trouble with the brawn of Ysgramor," Mindah said as she stood.

"For the Listener being an assassin, she sure does get along with the honorable warriors well," Cicero stated in a low voice.

"I was honorable before I was . . . not honorable."

"Assassin?" Thor asked from behind.

"You heard that?" Mindah asked.

"I already knew it . . ." Loki said with a sly grin.

"You are an assassin?" Thor repeated.

"Not just an assassin. I'm nice, too. You just saw that I'm the leader of the most respected group of warriors in Skyrim. Don't worry, I won't murder you in your sleep. I only kill who I get paid to kill."

"And you are the leader of the Thieves Guild," Loki stated.

"That's better than an assassin!"

"Do not worry, brother, she has no bad intentions. Neither does her jester companion," Loki told Thor.

They reached Breezehome.

"Just be up at dawn. That's when we leave," Mindah said as she unlocked the door.


	3. Chapter 3

**WARNING! Smut alert! If you are not comfortable with smut, skip the first part of this chapter. You won't miss anything but smut. You have been warned.**

* * *

"Another night of sleeping next to each other and no  _fun_ for sweet Mindah and  _poor_ Cicero!" Cicero exclaimed as he plopped himself down on the bed.

"Don't worry, I want it as much as you do, but we can't! Not with a mind-reading god and his brother, that is also a god, in the same house as us!" Mindah ranted, stripping of her armor as she did so.

Right when she turned her back to Cicero to slip her nightgown over her head, he was behind her with his hands—now gloveless—on her hips.

"He is the God of Mischief, right? What we do is certainly mischievous. . . Cicero thinks that if he  _did_ read one of our minds, he would be proud of us. . ." he said huskily, his voice taking the deeper tone it usually lowered to when he and Mindah did some sort of lustful act.

"But still. . ." Mindah trailed off as Cicero began to lower the straps of her breastband. She was frozen as he proceeded to toss the item across the room and cup his hands over Mindah's breasts.

 _Well,_ Mindah thought, noticing the wetness forming between her thighs,  _There's no turning back now._

She could almost  _hear_ Cicero grin deviously as he began to kneed the mounds of flesh in his hands. She really could hear him chuckle darkly when Mindah practically melted from his actions. With one final soft pinch to her nipples—coaxing a small whimper from Mindah—Cicero took his hands from her chest and turned his  _sweet_ Listener around.

Her eyes were wide and her lips were parted as if she was about to say something.

"The Listener needs to  _listen,_ not speak. That's what we have Speakers for!" Cicero whispered before roughly crashing his lips onto hers.

Mindah raised her hands to Cicero's chest and started to unbutton his motley. Cicero grabbed her hips once more and began pushing her—gently—toward the bed, all without breaking the kiss.

Cicero pulled back and shrugged the motley off, watching as Mindah fell back into the bed.

"Is the Keeper going to 'keep' the Listener?" Mindah asked as she adjusted her position on the bed.

"With pleasure. . ." Cicero replied with a knowing smirk. He knew exactly what she wanted.

With his pants and boots still on, Cicero sat down on the bed and made his way to Mindah's chest. Gently, (he was always gentle with Mindah unless she said otherwise, kisses not counting; she liked rough kisses) he took her breasts into his hands and one into his mouth, enticing a small squeak from Mindah, and began to circle one of her nipples with his tongue.

"You know I don't like it when you don't hurry up and get to the point!" Mindah whispered frantically.

"Oh yes, sweet Mindah does not  _like_ it, she  _loves_ it!" Cicero replied briefly before continuing his actions.

Mindah made a growling noise in the back of her throat, half from pleasure, half from irritation. The growl turned to a small moan as Cicero finally flicked his tongue over the nipple he was teasing and pinched the other.

Mindah made a soft whimpering noise as Cicero pulled back from her chest and began to lick his way down her body, stopping once he reached the hem of her final piece of underclothes.

Mindah arched her back so Cicero could pull the infernal undergarment off. Just like he did with her breastband, he threw it across the room. He lowered his face to Mindah's folds and blew.

"That feels so weird!" Mindah whispered, half to herself.

Cicero didn't respond. Instead, he ran a finger across her wetness. She shuttered.

Mindah reached down and pushed Cicero's head down a bit, urging him to get on with it.

He did as she wanted and got on with it, running his tongue over her and circling her clit. This time, however, he circled for only a second, and then flicked his tongue over the bundle of nerves.

"Ah. . ." Mindah moaned, just a bit.  _I have to stay quiet!_ she thought.

Cicero continued his actions, enjoying the small sounds coming from his Listener.

"How can you even move your tongue like that?" Mindah moaned.

"Practice!" Cicero's voice answered.

_Oh no, he's trying to make me scream. . ._

Mindah's orgasm hit her like a bolt of lightning—ironic because of the God of Thunder sleeping just a few feet away—and she gripped the sheets. "Sithis!" The house shook.

"Well of course the others would hear if Mindah makes the house shake!" Cicero said sarcastically, lifting his head up and wiping his mouth on the back of his hand.

"You made me do it. . ." Mindah rolled over to face Cicero, now sitting beside her, "I guess I need to return the favor now, huh?" she asked, eyeing the erection Cicero evidently had.

"It wouldn't be fair at all if Mindah didn't!" Cicero said with a mischievous grin.

"Gladly . . ."

* * *

"Did you sleep well, my Thane?" Lydia asked Mindah, who was sitting by the fire, still clad in her nightgown.

"I did," Mindah answered.

"Heh . . ." Loki chuckled from across the room.

"What are you laughing at?" Mindah asked.

"Nothing, nothing . . ." Loki waved it off nonchalantly.

Mindah said nothing, but continued to give Loki a strange look while arching her eyebrow.

"Anyway . . ." Mindah continued, "I had the strangest dream. There was a Redguard man that was trying to take me for ransom. He poked his head in the window of Lakeview and asked me for a septim. I told him I didn't have one. Then he pointed a crossbow at me and asked me again. I still told him no. Then my mother suddenly appears and tells me to hide in the cellar. I did, and watched through a crack in the door as she beat him half to death with a stick! Then it switched and I was sitting out in the stables and Farkas, Vilkas, Aela, and Brynjolf were sitting in front of me, all talking to each other. Then the Redguard bandit that my mother beat up walks up behind me, walking toward the forest. I ask him why he chose to be a bandit, and he says that it's the only thing he was good at. And then he kept walking. Then, Farkas, Vilkas, Aela, and Brynjolf turn around and just start laughing hysterically at me. Then I woke up. What the hell does that even mean? I haven't seen my mother in years! And why would Farkas, Vilkas, and Aela be talking to Brynjolf? They don't even know that I'm involved with his . . . organization," Mindah exclaimed.

"That's so unusual . . ." Thor commented.

"I know, right?"

"Catch, Listener," Cicero said, standing by the shelves in the kitchen. He then threw a sweetroll toward Mindah and took one for himself.

Mindah caught the sweetroll with ease and bit into it.

"Thanks," she said. Sweetroll in hand, Mindah stood and strode up the steps.

Once she entered her bedroom she stripped of her nightgown and grabbed her armor from the chest by her bed. When she was done dressing, she exited and walked back down to the main room of Breezehome. Thor and Cicero seemed to be having a conversation—a funny one, at that—with Loki making the occasional comment.

 _That scares me. . . Those three. . . Laughing about something Cicero said. . . Sithis, why does that horrify me so much?_ Mindah thought.

"Everyone ready to go?" she asked.

"Yes, Listener!" Cicero said eagerly. Thor and Loki nodded.

"Thanks for the dinner and breakfast, Lydia. I'll be back soon, I hope," Mindah said while giving her housecarl a strong hug.

"That's what I'm here for," Lydia said with a smile.

"Let's go." Mindah turned and opened the door, but was met by a guard.

"Sorry to disturb you, Dragonborn, but the Jarl would like a word with you and your. . . friends," he said shakily.

"He better be glad that he's my favorite Jarl besides Elisif. . ." Mindah growled as she walked past the guard, her three companions following her. "I can't wait to see what he has to say, though."

Once the group had reached the doors of Dragonsreach, they were met by a wave of noise coming from the many nobles gathered at the two long tables in front of the Jarl's throne.

"Ah, Dragonborn!" one of them said. Immediately, the noise stopped and all eyes were on Mindah, Thor, Loki, and Cicero.

"You wanted to see me, Jarl Balgruuf?" she asked as she walked forward.

"Once I heard of your new companions I couldn't help but to meet them," Balgruuf answered.

"Who did you get the info from?"

"Word spreads quickly when the legendary Companions take a trip to the town inn and get some mead in their systems."

"Dammit, Farkas. . ." Mindah mumbled, "And what exactly did you hear?" Mindah continued with a sly grin.

"That our Thane had gotten some new friends from  _Asgard_. Is that true?"

"Indeed it is. I know you have heard the tales of the Allfather and King Odin and Thor and Loki. Well, Jarl Balgruuf of Whiterun, meet Thor Odinson and Loki Odinson of Asgard." Mindah stood back to let Thor and Loki step forward.

"Wow. . . Asgardian gods. . . It's a pleasure to meet you. Mindah, tell me, how in the world did this happen?"

"It's a long story. . . Perhaps after I finish mine you can tell them about the Dragon Crisis."

"You have a deal. Proventus," Balgruuf turned to his awestruck steward, "Go fetch Farengar. I'm sure he'll want to hear this."

* * *

"And one day, Mindah comes trudging in, asking me if she could trap a dragon in my palace! At first I thought she was crazy, but then she told me that she needed to figure out where Alduin went. I told her that I would be glad to help, but with the Civil War raging and both sides waiting for me to make a wrong move, I wasn't going to do anything of the sort while both were watching me. So she goes off and arranges a peace council between the two sides and actually got the two most stubborn men I've ever met to make an agreement! I'm still amazed by her skill in both the sword, and her silver-tongue," Jarl Balgruuf recalled.

"With an agreement made, I readied my men and the trap. When she arrived, she Shouted the dragon's name into the sky, and it came! The thing was huge, and a crimson red color. A truly marvelous sight. She talked to it, and it told her that Alduin went to a place called Skuldalfin, and that she could only get there with the wings of a dragon."

"Now, when she actually agreed to climb on the thing's back and let it fly her to the place, and to let it out in the first place, I thought her mad again. But I went along with it. She did, she flew off to the east on the back of a dragon. The whole town saw it. The Companions even came up and saluted her as she did. Either they thought she was very brave, or very stupid, but they still saluted their Harbinger. A few days later, she comes back, barely alive and her armor in ruins, and says she defeated Alduin. The dragons respect her now, as a leader of some sort."

"I can call them by name and they will come to my aid. They think of me as one of them, now," Mindah said.

The whole court had gathered and listened to Mindah's take of the Bifrost and the events leading up to where they were now, and Balgruuf's recalling of the Dragon Crisis. Both Thor and Loki had listened intently throughout the tale, asking the occasional question. Even Cicero was quiet.

 _I think we're all learning things. . ._ Mindah thought.

"And there isn't anything more you can tell me of the Bifrost?" Farengar asked Loki, again. The court-mage was oblivious to the fact that he was severely getting on Loki's nerves, but everyone else noticed, even Mindah.

"No, there is not. Do not ask me again," Loki said sternly.

"I wouldn't ask him again if I were you," Mindah advised, getting a chuckle from the nobles in the room.

"And you said that you were heading for the College next?" Balgruuf asked Mindah.

"Aye. I bet the Arcanaeum has something about this 'Miraak'. I'm determined to get as much knowledge as I can before I go to Solstheim," Mindah answered.

"And you're sure that you don't know anything about Miraak, Farengar?" Balgruuf asked the mage.

"I am certain. The College would definitely have something about him, though," he answered.

"So we go to the College," Mindah said, standing up. Thor, Loki, and Cicero followed suit.

"Safe travels, Dragonborn," Balgruuf said with a wave of his hand.

The four exited the hall and descended the steps. Heimskr was ranting, as usual, about "the almighty Talos", but was annoying the citizens of Whiterun with it, as usual.

"I swear I need to kill that guy someday. He gets on my nerves," Mindah muttered, gesturing toward the priest.

"What  _is_ he preaching about?" Loki asked.

"Talos, the Ninth Divine," Mindah started, "I don't know if you know or not, but Tamriel's citizens mostly worship the Nine Divines. Akatosh, Arkay, Dibella, Jullianos, Mara, Zenithar, Kynareth, Stendarr, and Talos. When the High Elves, or Altmer, from the Summerset Isles invaded the capital of Tamriel, the Imperial City and slaughtered us, the White-Gold Concordat was signed, one of the terms being the outlaw of Talos worshipping. The elves believe that because Talos was once a man named Tiber Septim that ascended to Godhood, 'no mortal can be worshipped'. Personally, I really don't care who you worship. Heimskr over there is a big believer of Talos, so everyday, he goes over there and screams about it."

"Talos was a mortal?" Loki inquired.

"Yes. He was also Dragonborn. Long ago, back in the second era, Tiber Septim conquered all of Tamriel and founded the Septim Empire, bringing peace to the providences. He was crowned emperor. When he died, people turned him into a Divine. I say, if you wanna worship a dead guy, go right ahead. After all, the Dark Brotherhood worships a dead lady's corpse," Mindah explained.

"The  _Night Mother_ , bride of Sithis! Listener Mindah is the only one that can hear our Lady when she speaks, making her the Listener. That's why she's the leader," Cicero added.

"Strange . . ." Thor murmured.

"Indeed. You get used to it." Mindah nodded to the guards as they opened the gate.

When they reached the stables, Mindah approached Skulvar Stable-Hilt.

"Gimme the strongest horse ya got," she said.

"All right then. Her name's Allie. She's the one saddled up over there. One thousand septims," he answered.

"I usually wouldn't pay that much, but you have me in a good mood, so here." Mindah handed three large coin purses to the man.

"Cicero, take the horse. It'll be good for you to have your own," Mindah instructed Cicero as she climbed onto Shadowmere.

"For Cicero, really?" the jester asked as Thor and Loki climbed onto their horses.

"Yep, go on, get on. We don't have all day," Mindah huffed as she put her helmet on, "We're going to move at top-speed on our way to Winterhold." She looked back at her companions. "Ready to go?"

"Lead on," Thor answered.

"Follow me." Mindah pulled on the reins, making Shadowmere gallop north.

* * *

"We'll be there soon. I think we should slow down now," Mindah said from atop Shadowmere.

The sky was beginning to darken, and snow flurried in the air. They had made it past the Nightgate Inn and only had a few more miles to go. All of them, except for Loki, had heavy cloaks on to try to fend off the deadly cold that inhabitants of the northern parts of Skyrim had to deal with. Luckily, Mindah had learned to endure it, and had made her armor specially made to fight off the cold. She wondered why Loki wasn't wearing a cloak . . .

"That fort up ahead might have some bandits in it, so we should speed up to get past it," Mindah instructed as they neared Fort Kastav.

The group neared the fort. It seemed empty. No one stood guard. Nothing happened. They passed. Still, nothing.

"For once, there's no bandits . . ." Mindah muttered.

"How much longer until we get to Winterhold? It is getting dark," Thor asked.

"Not much longer if we pick up the pace a bit. I'd say we have about three more miles to go," Mindah answered.

". . . I'll plunge my knife into her belly! . . ." Cicero seemed to be in his own little world of ranting and singing, and laughing. He hadn't spoken directly to anyone during the trip, his only words being bits and pieces of songs and verses he had made. It was usual for him to space out when travelling. Mindah was used to it, and found it amusing to listen to. Another reason Cicero was coming along.

"The Shrine of Azura is on top of that mountain. She's the Daedric prince of Dusk and Dawn. Dunmer usually worship her, Mephala, and Boethia. Some say that when the Dunmer fled from Morrowind to here, they built the shrine. I've made the trek up there. It's quite the sight," Mindah recalled.

"This realm has many gods," Thor commented.

"Probably because we have lots of different people. Each race worships their own gods, mostly. It's illegal to worship Daedra, though. They're considered evil. People still do it, though."

"Just like how it is illegal to worship Talos. Too many restrictions . . ."

"You got that right," Mindah said, digging her heels into Shadowmere's sides. All of them sped up.

They made it to Winterhold in the next hour. The town was dreary, as it usually was. The few citizens of Winterhold that weren't College members were in the inn, probably trying to find some gossip in the small town.

"For this town having a college of mages, it certainly is dilapidated," Loki commented, sliding off his horse in front of the college.

"Something called 'The Great Collapse' happened some time ago. Part of the city fell into the sea. They still haven't rebuilt. I haven't seen it myself, but this town used to be a big city, its pride being the College. Now, people shun and fear the College because they think they caused the Collapse. They didn't. There's no reason why they would make the city fall into the sea. They only reason that the College is left unharmed is because it's magical. Simple as that," Mindah explained as they walked across the bridge to the College.

"Does anyone know what caused the collapse?" Thor asked.

"If someone does, I haven't met them. I don't have the slightest idea."

"Still, this college is impressive," Loki commented, glancing around at the courtyard of the College.

"What is that?" Thor asked, gesturing to the statue of Shalidor and the blue magicka rising from a pool in front of it.

"Shalidor, the first Arch-Mage. That blue stuff is like liquefied magic or something. It makes our magic reserves stronger," Mindah explained, "Don't touch it!"

Thor pulled his hand back from the pool.

"I made that mistake my first day here. Unless you want a half-melted hand that Colette will reluctantly fix, don't touch it. It hurts like hell."

"Hm, I can feel the magic radiating from it," Loki stated.

"I can't . . ." Thor sounded disappointed.

"Probably because you're not familiar with magic. I'll get Faralda to teach you a lightning spell if you want," Mindah said, "I would, but I'm not a very good teacher."

"I would like that." Thor smiled.

"C'mon. I'll introduce you to Savos, the Arch-Mage. I'm sure he'll be overjoyed to meet you. Hell, I'm sure the entire College will be overjoyed to meet you," Mindah exclaimed as she walked toward the Hall of Elements.

Savos was sitting at his desk in the Arch-Mage's quarters when Mindah approached.

"I got some people I want you to meet," she said simply.

"Mindah! One of our finest students! Welcome back! You have never brought someone to meet me, other than that eccentric Imperial friend of yours. Who are they?" Savos asked with a smile.

"I know for a fact that you know of the legends of Asgard and the gods there. Two of them fell from the sky three days ago near my house north of Falkreath. Turns out, we're all after the same guy, so we're helping each other with it. Savos, meet Thor, God of Thunder, and Loki, God of Mischief," Mindah explained and stepped back.

Savos's eyes widened at the mention and sight of Asgardians. He held his hand out and gave them both a handshake.

"Really? Why are you here, then?"

"For the books. There's a man named Miraak on Solstheim and he tried to have me killed. Thor and Loki were sent here to kill him. Everyone we've talked to has no idea who Miraak is, so we came here in hopes that Urag would be able to help us," Mindah explained.

"If there's a book on it, Urag's got it," Savos said.

"Oh, I know." Mindah turned and walked toward the steps leading to the Arcanaeum, Cicero, Thor, and Loki trailing behind her.

Books lined the walls of the most impressive library in Skyrim, its keeper sitting in a chair behind a counter. The elder Orc looked up and scowled at the sight of Mindah and her loud, eccentric, Imperial friend.

"Greetings, Urag!" Mindah called as she approached the counter.

"All right, you, I'm fine with, but your friends better keep the noise down!" Urag commanded.

"I'll make sure they do. Now, I'm looking for some books about someone called 'Miraak' and Solstheim. Got anything?" Mindah asked calmly, ignoring the elf's harsh tone.

"Hm, I know we have some books on Solstheim, but I don't know about this 'Miraak'. Let me see. . ." Urag stood and crossed the library to a bookcase. After rummaging around in it for a moment, he pulled out three books.

"Here. There two are about the people and cultures of Solstheim, and this one is about the island itself," Urag informed, handing the books over.

"Thanks, and before you can say it,  _I'll be careful with your books_."

"You better be, unless-"

"Yes yes, angry atronachs. We've had this talk before."

Urag said nothing and scowled.

"Glad to see we have an understanding." Mindah smirked and walked to a vacant table.

"You can either look around or help me read through these books. Your choice," she said to the three standing in front of her.

Thor and Cicero walked off in separate directions. Loki picked up a book and sat down across from Mindah, who was reading her own book.

"I must say, you're quite interesting," Loki started, not looking up from his book.

Mindah arched an eyebrow, but did not look up from her book as well, "How so?"

"You are a legendary hero of this land, noble, honorable, the leader of the most feared warriors here, and on the outside, you seem good. But no, you are also menacing, maniacal, and generally evil, being the leader of the Dark Brotherhood, a guild of thieves, and associate yourself with many 'evil' gods. You are both good, and bad. You are a small woman, and could be underestimated without your armor on, but there is so much power in such a small package. Not to mention that you are having an affair with your insane best friend. How could that not be interesting?" Loki explained, counting each point off on his fingers.

"You've been reading my mind more than I thought."

"Certainly. I was not planning on it, but the pieces of information I already had were so varied, I wanted to know the whole story," he smirked, "And you thought that I did not hear you last night when your 'friend' seemed to be moving his tongue in the most  _wonderful_ ways."

"You- you-" Mindah stammered, glaring at Loki.

"And you can't deny it."

"Fine," Mindah spat and stood. Loki still had that devious smile (that Mindah secretly found attractive) on his face when she stomped toward the bookshelves.

The book she had been reading didn't mention anything about a 'Miraak'. It was short and sweet, just talking a bit about the few cultures of Solstheim. She skimmed over the spines of the books and stopped when she reached one with no words on it. It was a muddy brown, thick, and old-looking. Curious as to what it was, Mindah pulled-or tried to-it out. It wouldn't budge. She grabbed the top and pulled it out.

It still wouldn't come out.

Mindah narrowed her eyes, making a silent vow to try again later. She grabbed another book and sat down by herself. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

Mindah awoke with a start. She looked up. She was still in the library, and was apparently reading the same book she picked up after failing to pull the strange book from the shelf. Across the room, Loki was still awake, meaning she probably hadn't been asleep long. Urag was gone. Thor and Cicero weren't in sight. Someone must have shown them their rooms.

A strange . . .  _presence_ pulled Mindah from her thoughts.

The book.

She walked back to the book, not noticing that Loki was watching to see what would happen. She grabbed the book and energy shot through her, but she wasn't shocked. She just felt  _power_.

Power still surging through her, she pulled the book out. The bookcase slid over, revealing a secret staircase going down. The soft tapping of footsteps sounded behind her. She knew it was Loki.

"Did you know this was here?" he asked.

"No," Mindah said, focused on fighting the urge to enter the secret room.

Her feet took a mind of their own, and began to lead her down the stairs . . .

* * *

**All right guys! Now we have things rolling here. I'm a little skeptical (did I spell that right?) about that smut scene. It's the first I've ever wrote. Anyway, I have a question, can any of you guess what's going to happen next? What's in the room? I'm curious as to what you think. Another question, how are you liking this so far? I'm also curious about that. Chapter 4 will be up soon. Oh yeah, and I would like to thank Darkarashi for his comment! It made my day!**

**-Rayne**


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